Chapter 435 Factory Tour ②
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Oh? Hey, Kento, what’s this little guy?”
”Ah, that’s the new prototype-the ‘Wriggle-Buddy,’” I replied.
”Wait, this is it?” Rose asked, leaning in.
We were currently touring the workshop of Lady Loire-Rose, the Holy Figure². Her interest had shifted to the “Wriggle-Buddy” production line, which was still in the middle of being calibrated. I had shown her the finished unit at the royal palace, but what we were looking at now was the raw Mystery Rod³ that serves as the internal core.
The Mystery Rod was quite striking-translucent and glowing with a warm, honey-colored amber hue-but otherwise, it was just a stick. Rose clearly couldn’t fathom how this was the engine behind the Wriggle-Buddy. She tilted her head, her face a mask of confusion. I grabbed a sample Rod after getting a quick nod from the Sisters, who were preoccupied with a heated debate over shift rotations.
”Go ahead, give it a squeeze,” I said.
”Is this… I don’t know, Kento, feels a bit suggestive, doesn’t it?” Rose asked. “Are you sure I should be manhandling this?”
”It’s not like that! I’m just explaining the internal mechanics!” I snapped.
”I’m just saying, the whole vibe is pretty erotic,” she teased. “But hey, if you’re giving me permission, I won’t say no.”
Rose gave me a sly, knowing smirk, leaning hard into the “teasing the innocent manager” routine. As the Holy Figure, she’s supposedly a paragon of virtue, but she’s actually a total handful. I can never let my guard down. Despite her playful protest, she wrapped her fingers around the Mystery Rod with a slow, deliberate, and unnecessarily sultry grip.
”Eek!?”
The Mystery Rod reacted instantly, writhing violently and coiling itself around her hand. Rose hadn’t expected it to be quite so… energetic. She let go in a panic, frantically rubbing her palms together as if trying to shake off the phantom sensation of the movement.
She’s so calculated. I mean, she didn’t know exactly what would happen, so I doubt it was entirely staged, but her reaction was precisely the kind of thing that makes a guy feel like he’s losing his grip on his professional composure.
”What on earth was that!?” she demanded.
”That,” I explained, “is the soul of the Wriggle-Buddy. Come on, try it again.”
”Ugh, fine…”
I nudged her to try again. Once she regained her nerve and gripped it, the Mystery Rod began its rhythmic squirming once more. I stepped back, letting her observe the motion at her own pace.
”Whoa…” Rose muttered.
”Hehe. It really is something, isn’t it?” Sister Amelia said, walking over with a gentle smile. “I was just as shocked when I first saw it.”
Watching the Holy Figure and the Saint bonding over a magic rod writhing between their fingers was an surreal, indescribable experience. As I was lost in the absurdity of it, Rose turned back to me with a glint in her eye.
”Hey, Kento. Could you make this thing longer?”
”Eh? I mean, technically, I suppose I could…” I replied.
”Then you could have it, like, coil around your whole body…”
”Are you talking about ‘tentacles’?” I asked flatly.
”Bingo! You’re on my wavelength! You know, they’re extinct now, but the old-school Incubi used to have parts just like that,” Rose said excitedly. “Don’t you think it’d be a hit for the sisters’ ‘spiritual training’⁴?”
”No. Absolutely not. If that thing wraps around someone’s neck, we’re looking at a tragedy. It’s a safety nightmare,” I said.
”Aw, party pooper…”
Rose really does have the soul of a merchant. Between her “Holy Figure” branded gear and this, she was constantly looking for a way to add market value. It made me curious about her upbringing.
”Lady Rose, was your family originally part of the Salvation Faction⁵?” I asked.
”Hm? Oh, because I’m so focused on the bottom line? Yeah, my family was technically Salvation Faction through and through. Honestly, most of the Church’s upper management is these days. I was just born into it by luck, though,” she explained.
”I’m not sure I follow,” I said.
This was the kind of Church internal politics I didn’t quite grasp yet. From what I understood, the Church was split into three major theological groups: the Ascetic Faction⁶, the Salvation Faction, and the Pilgrimage Faction⁷.
The Ascetics, as the name suggests, believe in reaching divine grace through suffering and penance. The Canariasconvent belongs to this group.
The Salvation Faction is the polar opposite. They focus on charity and social work, but they operate on the practical belief that you need money to help people. They don’t shy away from business or profit. The Great Cathedral of Canaria-and Archbishop Trantestar specifically-are the face of this group.
Then there’s the Pilgrimage Faction, the wanderers who travel to spread the word, though they’ve mostly faded into obscurity lately.
In this world, the faction with the gold usually holds the power. But Rose’s comment about being “born into it by luck” piqued my interest.
”See, the previous Holy Figure took me in almost the second I was born,” Rose said, her tone becoming surprisingly casual. “So I don’t really have a strong connection to my biological family. They’re nice enough when we meet, and I know I’m ‘loved’ or whatever, but that’s about it.”
”Is that just how the system works for Holy Figures?” I asked.
”Pretty much. In my case, they saw this white hair and decided it was a sign of divine favor. That was all the excuse they needed to hand me over to the Church’s care.”
Rose pulled a lock of her snowy hair out from under her hat to show me before tucking it back in. Apparently, the “entrusted child” system scouts candidates for all sorts of reasons-sometimes it’s a physical trait like her hair or silver eyes, or a “Stigma” birthmark. Other times, it’s just an omen, like a rainbow appearing over the house at the moment of birth.
Basically, any justification will do. The “best” candidates are groomed to be Holy Figures, while the rest are either sent home at twenty or stay on as lifelong attendants. It seemed like a system designed to scout talent regardless of social rank while ensuring the Holy Figure remained free from family influence. At least, that was my theory.
”So, my ‘Salvation’ mindset isn’t really from my family-it’s because we were flat broke,” Rose continued. “Before I took over, we had three generations of ‘Ascetic’ Holy Figures in a row. None of them cared about money. They were very pious, sure, but they were also penniless. I think the reason the Wielope Faction was able to walk all over us for so long was because we couldn’t afford to fight back.”
”That… is a very painful truth to hear,” Sister Amelia muttered, her expression tightening.
”Ahahaha! Why are you taking the hit, Amelia?” Rose laughed, slapping the Saint’s back. “The Canariasconvent is doing great! You’re technically Ascetic, yet here you are, funding your mission with Wriggle-Buddies!”
Amelia looked troubled, but she didn’t argue. Now that Rose mentioned it, this convent was surprisingly pragmatic. Even if they justified it as “training,” they hadn’t hesitated to turn their home into a vibrator factory.
”I’ve heard that our shift toward pragmatism was heavily influenced by Archbishop Trantestar,” Amelia said quietly. “When he took office, he saw our financial state and insisted on giving us management advice. He said that when the Holy City was in crisis, and when this country was starving, a Church that couldn’t provide aid was useless…”
Was that smirking old man actually a visionary? He was the one who authorized the factory, and he’d been instrumental in helping me move “Hot-Shot-kun” units during the northern war… As I was reconsidering the Archbishop, Rose spoke up again.
”Exactly. That’s why we had ‘Testa’ move here in the first place.”
””…What?”” Amelia and I said in unison.
”Think about it,” Rose said, raising her hands and making a weird, crab-like snipping gesture with her fingers. “When the Holy City is being strangled by Wielope, you want someone on the outside who can squeeze them from the rear. It’s a pincer attack! A classic pincer attack!”
It made perfect sense. If you wanted to fight the corruption in the Holy City, you needed a wealthy, influential ally in the Kingdom of Canaria who could move independently. But then…
”Wait. Was the person who taught you the Salvation Faction’s business philosophy…?”
”Ding ding ding! You got it,” Rose smirked. “It was a young Trantestar, back when he was a student in the Holy City.”
The shocking truth… well, it wasn’t exactly shocking, but it confirmed that the old man was a serious mastermind. I’d always known he was slippery, but the scale of his long game was staggering.
”So, that’s the situation. I want to rake in more gold,” Rose said. “If the ‘Holy Figure Edition’ Wriggle-Buddy is a no-go for now, do you have any other ‘feel-good’ strategies for me?”
I didn’t bother nitpicking her word choice. I did have a plan, but it wasn’t the “get rich quick” scheme she was looking for.
”Let’s get serious,” I said. “We’re going to start an aggressive sales push into the Wielope territories.”
—
Summary:
Kento gives Rose a tour of the Mystery Rod production line, where she suggests turning the vibrating components into tentacles for ‘training’ purposes. The conversation shifts to Church politics, revealing the three major factions and Rose’s pragmatism. It culminates in the revelation that Archbishop Trantestar is a political mastermind who mentored Rose to destabilize the Holy City’s corruption.
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Trivia:
- The Mystery Rod is the amber-like power source for the vibrating goods.
- Rose has white hair as a mark of ‘divine grace,’ which is why she was chosen as a Holy Figure.
- The Church is divided into Ascetic, Salvation, and Pilgrimage factions.
- Archbishop Trantestar was Rose’s mentor in the Holy City.
- Wielope is the current antagonist faction/leader causing trouble in the Holy City
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Character Insight:
Rose reveals a deeper, more strategic side, showing her business acumen is a survival mechanism born from poverty. Amelia continues to struggle with the moral conflict of her ‘Ascetic’ roots versus the ‘Salvation’ pragmatism forced by circumstances.
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Behind the Scenes:
The author parodies religious factions by making the ‘Salvation’ group essentially a corporate-style organization focused on capital.
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TL Notes:
Notes:
• Kento – Lord Harvest—the unassuming owner of the Harvest magic tool shop (with a discreet adult goods side). An isekai’d Japanese salaryman resembling Kazuma Satou, with dark hair and basic magic for crafting. Recently triumphed over a Great Dragon; now juggles his harem, tinkering, and ties to Amelia and the Queen at Ddo-Buddy Manor.
• Loire-Rose – Current Saintess and top of the Great Cathedral food chain. White hair, pale skin, blue eyes—the full divine aesthetic. Can literally manifest light and blessings, but don’t let the holy glow fool you. She’s pragmatic, money‑minded, and way too playful for church politics. Runs a workshop (yeah, even sells adult goods on the side) and keeps her “holy” mask on… most of the time. Originally born to a Salvation Faction family, later adopted by the previous Holy Figure. Total mix of divinity and chaos, and somehow it works.
• Amelia – A light blue-haired Sister of the Church of Demon-Subjugating and Kento’s shy harem member. A newly awakened “Saint” from Holy Sleep, modest and easily embarrassed with red ears and neck. Wears her habit and treasures Kento’s ring on a necklace.
• Trantestar – The middle-aged man Archbishop of Canarias and the initiator of the current trial. He is an alleged ally of Kento but remains suspiciously neutral.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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